FRESHLY CAUGHT SEAFOOD

‘The Great White was a man-eater, terrorising a small beach town. Three days at sea before I found her. Dragged my boat for fifty miles.’

‘Now the Orca. He was a tough old bastard. Almost took my boat. Did take half my leg,’ the old man tapped his wooden stump. ‘After him I decided to quit and open the restaurant.’

I took a bite of the wonderful seafood linguine.

‘And the skeleton?’ I pointed to the strange decoration, smiling.

‘Old Roger? He was my first customer when I opened. Easiest catch I ever made.’ He returned my smile.

I gulped.


dales-restaurant-photo
Copyright Dale Rogerson

Written as part of the Friday Fictioneers challenge hosted by Rochelle Wisoff-Fields (more details HERE). The idea is to write a short story of 100 words based on the photo prompt (above).

To read stories of 100 words based on this week’s prompt, visit HERE.

STAT OF DENIAL INITIAL RELEASE IMAGE
I’m excited to announce my second novel, ‘State Of Denial’, a sequel to last year’s ‘A Justified State’, will be published on the 27th September 2019.

The Amazon Kindle version is available to pre-order now through the following links:

Amazon.com    Amazon.co.uk    Amazon.ca    Amazon.com.au    Amazon.in

The paperback version will be published simultaneously on the 27th of September.


Thank you to all those who have already bought and read ‘A Justified State’ and for the many kind reviews and comments. I hope you will enjoy the sequel and how the story continues just as much.

For those who want to see how the story begins, ‘A Justified State’ is available now on Amazon in paperback and on Kindle:

Amazon.com    Amazon.co.uk    Amazon.ca    Amazon.com.au    Amazon.in

cropped-justified-new-banner-1.jpg

 

82 responses to “FRESHLY CAUGHT SEAFOOD”

  1. Eat or be eaten. That made me smile, Iain

    Liked by 1 person

  2. Haha clever, very clever!

    Liked by 1 person

  3. Dear Iain,

    I’d be gulping, too. Nicely done.

    Shalom,

    Rochelle

    Liked by 1 person

    1. It’d put you off getting dessert anyway! Thanks Rochelle

      Like

  4. Wonder what the future holds for him.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Possibly not much beyond this meal!

      Like

  5. So the skeleton wasn’t a jolly Roger 🙂 The owner here is pretty creepy. I think I’d leave the rest of my lunch and run!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Couldn’t resist calling him Roger 😉 Thanks Linda

      Liked by 2 people

  6. I just remembered, I have an appointment. Oh my goodness, I am already a half an hour late! Here’s a fifty. keep the change. Bye! No gulping – that means more food, and whatever is in that food, into the system….

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Wait – don’t you want dessert?! 😉

      Liked by 1 person

  7. Funny stuff. I think the best policy is to never ask about stuff on the walls.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Ha, you might be right! 🙂

      Like

  8. EEK! Never eating at a restaurant again! 😀

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Best to stick to the one’s in the tourist guide and avoid this one 😉

      Liked by 1 person

  9. Well, that was ominous…I hope this customer makes a speedy exit before they become the next Roger!

    Well written as always, I’ve got a lot of catching up to do with your stories, Iain! Glad to see you’re doing well 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thank you Jade, great to see you back again 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

  10. I could not help but smile at the wild stories 😀

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thank you Colline 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

  11. The last line was a cinch. Nicely done. Congrats and best wishes in advance for your second novel, Kelly.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thank you Neel. Hope you get the chance to check it out.

      Like

  12. Loved this Iain. Really made me smile.
    Best wishes,
    Rowena

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thanks Rowena, always good to spread a smile 🙂

      Like

  13. Wow! You’ve so much attention to detail. I’m guessing that’s a restaurant that specializes in last meals.

    Liked by 1 person

  14. This made me laugh. I know not to get on his bad side.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Best to compliment the chef and try to get out alive! Thank you Michele

      Liked by 1 person

  15. Ha… at least it’s a good thing to go for the fish and not for the meat… who know’s what he puts in the pies.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Now there’s a thought!

      Like

      1. Well, would stay away from “catch of the day”

        Liked by 2 people

  16. No wonder he doesn’t have many customers. Nice story.

    Liked by 1 person

  17. That would make me wonder exactly what I was eating. Well done and unexpected!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thank you Sascha – hopefully it still tastes nice… 😉

      Liked by 1 person

      1. It’s probably all in the seasoning. 😀

        Liked by 1 person

  18. I shall choose to believe his last comment was with tongue firmly planted in cheek…

    Liked by 1 person

    1. You’re a very trusting soul! 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

  19. Seems old Sweeney has a new profession!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. His sea shanties are better than Sweeney’s songs though.

      Like

  20. OMG that was the best. A#1!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Ha, thank you so much 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

      1. You are very welcome, and good eyes on seeing the skeleton!

        Liked by 1 person

  21. Uh-oh! Is he about to become ‘Catch of the day’?

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Very good, this one has inspired a lot of good puns 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Yeah, it was quite catchy!

        Liked by 1 person

  22. Meep! You have to wonder what/who he’s currently eating too… 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

    1. All sorts of things on the menu to choose from…!

      Liked by 1 person

  23. Funny, cute story and it really made me laugh. Thanks.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thank you Nan, good to know it raised a smile 🙂

      Like

  24. There is nothing like dry humour from an old survival like a fisherman to raise the hackles.

    Liked by 1 person

  25. No way I’m contributing to his net profits!

    Liked by 1 person

  26. ROFL, what a yarn that guy spins. Great fun.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thank you so much 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

  27. I’d gulp too.Does he get many return customers?

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Only if he lets them leave first 😉

      Like

  28. Oh no! Don’t gulp – spit it out!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. 🙂 It would put you off your dinner for sure!

      Like

  29. I can hear the twilight zone music playing in the backround. Hope theres nothing between him and the door!

    Liked by 1 person

  30. Eeeep I hadn’t spotted that in the image. Great take on the prompt. Now I’m wondering what else they serve there.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. An interesting and varied menu, I assure you!

      Like

  31. t was a totally unexpected ending… i mean, for the first customer. 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

  32. Made me smile – like the flavour of your seafood story.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thank you, I like to spread a smile 🙂

      Like

  33. What happened to old Roger? Why is a drawing of his skeleton up on the wall?

    Liked by 1 person

  34. A good, well-written story with a great ending twist, Iain. I wouldn’t eat in any restaurant with a skeleton as a decoration. Also, I think that story would cause me to have a loss of appetite for seafood served there. 🙂 — Suzanne

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Certainly make you suspicious of what’s in the bowl! Thanks Suzanne

      Liked by 1 person

  35. That made me laugh out VERY loud!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. I am glad, thank you Dawn! 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

  36. Funny, you’re going to have to get yourself a bigger boat!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. You have noticed where my inspiration came from! 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

  37. Yep, some one told me I looked like the boat bloke one day, I think because I was dressed accordingly, it’s sneaking it’s way into conversation ever since!!

    Liked by 1 person

Leave a comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.